SUBJECT:

PURPOSE:

Syracuse
Friday
June 3, 2005
11:00 AM
Onondaga County Legislative Chambers
County Courthouse
401 Montgomery Street
Room 407

New York State and its local governments have a statutory obligation to provide comprehensive care and treatment to citizens with mental disabilities (Mental Hygiene Law §7.01 and §13.01). It has been nearly 30 years since the State broadly examined the effectiveness of the mental hygiene service delivery system and reorganized the Department of Mental Hygiene. In November 2003, the Assembly Committee on Mental Health, Mental Retardation and Developmental Disabilities formed a task force, comprised of over 50 stakeholders, to examine the current mental hygiene service delivery system and to propose recommendations on restructuring the system. After 15 months of work, the Mental Hygiene Task Force issued a report, "An Evaluation of the Delivery of Mental Hygiene Services in New York State," which provides a catalyst for public discussion on improving the services provided to persons with mental disabilities.

To effectuate a thorough evaluation, four Task Force committees were formed: the Committee on Intergovernmental and Strategic Planning, the Committee on Continuum of Services, the Committee on Underserved Populations, and the Committee on Resources. This hearing will focus on the recommendations provided by two Committees of the Task Force, including the Committee on Intergovernmental and Strategic Planning, which focused on the structural issues of the mental hygiene system that hinder the development and implementation of a comprehensive system of services. Additionally, the hearing will focus on proposals initiated by the Committee on Resources, which considered the availability and constructs of both public and private resources and how to better utilize such resources. A copy of the Task Force report is available online at www.assembly.state.ny.us/comm/Mental/20050303/.

Please see the reverse side for a list of subjects to which witnesses may direct their testimony, and for a description of the bills which will be discussed at the hearing.

Persons wishing to present pertinent testimony to the Committee at the above hearing should complete and return the enclosed reply form as soon as possible. It is important that the reply form be fully completed and returned so that persons may be notified in the event of emergency postponement or cancellation.

Oral testimony will be limited to 10 minutes’ duration. In preparing the order of witnesses, the Committee will attempt to accommodate individual requests to speak at particular times in view of special circumstances. These requests should be made on the attached reply form or communicated to Committee staff as early as possible. In the absence of a request, witnesses will be scheduled in the order in which reply forms are postmarked.

Ten copies of any prepared testimony should be submitted at the hearing registration desk. The Committee would appreciate advance receipt of prepared statements.

In order to further publicize these hearings, please inform interested parties and organizations of the Committee’s interest in hearing testimony from all sources.

In order to meet the needs of those who may have a disability, the Assembly, in accordance with its policy of non-discrimination on the basis of disability, as well as the 1990 Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA), has made its facilities and services available to all individuals with disabilities. For individuals with disabilities, accommodations will be provided, upon reasonable request, to afford such individuals access and admission to Assembly facilities and activities.

SELECTED ISSUES TO WHICH WITNESSES MAY DIRECT THEIR TESTIMONY:

1. As implemented, is the current statewide 5-year planning process, required pursuant to §5.07 of the Mental Hygiene Law, sufficiently and appropriately addressing the needs of persons with mental disabilities across the State?

2. Should the Legislature consider expanding the current role and function of the Inter-Office Coordinating Council, as proposed in A.8165 (Rivera, P.), as a means of improving the planning process required of the Offices of the Department of Mental Hygiene and as a means for improving interagency coordination?

3. How is the current state planning process affecting local governmental units and the delivery of local services?

4. Are services to persons with multiple disabilities provided in a coordinated manner on the local level? What specific measures should the Legislature consider to improve the coordination on the state level between the Office of Mental Health, the Office of Mental Retardation and Developmental Disabilities, and the Office of Alcoholism and Substance Abuse Services?

5. What is the impact, if any, of the increasing use of Medicaid funding on the delivery of mental hygiene services on the local level?

6. Services to persons with mental disabilities are funded through several state agencies, including the Offices of the Department of Mental Hygiene, the Departments of Health, Education, and Labor, and the Office for the Aging. How can the State improve the coordination between state agencies in order to efficiently appropriate limited resources?

7. What innovative measures should the State consider supporting in order to maximize the efficient use of state funds?

8. The Committee on Intergovernmental and Strategic Planning and the Committee on Resources proposed numerous recommendations to improve the delivery of mental hygiene services. What specific initiatives would likely foster the most improvements to the current system? Conversely, which recommendations, if any, may not produce the desired outcome?

PUBLIC HEARING REPLY FORM

Persons wishing to present testimony at the public hearing on Restructuring the Delivery of Mental Hygiene Services in New York State are requested to complete this reply form as soon as possible and mail it to:

Jennifer Best
Committee Assistant
Assembly Committee on Mental Health, Mental
Retardation and Developmental Disabilities
Room 522 Capitol
Albany, New York 12248
Email: bestj@assembly.state.ny.us
Phone: (518) 455-4371
Fax: (518) 455-4693

I will address my remarks to the following subjects:

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